A Welcome Change
by Band Gleek
Summary: Tina has good grades, great friends, a nice voice, and a dedicated boyfriend. She should have been entirely content, but what she really wanted was excitement. She was tired of being a cliche. Slight Tina/Artie, Tina/Puck, and Tina/Kurt friendship
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: ok…I've never done one of these before but from the many I have read, they usually go something like this:

I own nothing except my cliché little plotline. If I owned Glee, Puck would be secretly in love with Kurt and Chris Colfer would be my bff.

A/N: I've been reading Glee fanfiction practically religiously for the past few months to get me through the Glee hiatus, but this is my first attempt at writing my own story. Tell me if you think I should keep writing or just stick to reading, and if you have any other tips or constructive criticism for me, that'd be awesome.

**A Welcome Change**

**Chapter 1**

Outside of glee, Tina just happened to be the stereotypical Asian in the matter that she got straight A's in all her classes, rocked the goth look, and happened to kinda sorta really like math, though she'd never admit it because that wouldn't really help her reputation. Though she seemed to excel academically, had a nice voice, a few good friends, and a loving boyfriend, Tina felt like she was missing something. Despite this, she would go about her daily routine as if she was entirely content with her life when what she really wanted was change.

She wanted excitement! Artie was great. He was kind to her, romantic, and always knew what to say, but there was no spontaneity in their relationship: a sweet peck on the lips when they met or departed and Friday night movie nights for their alone time. These evenings usually consisted of taking turns picking movies, cuddling up in Tina's oversized living room to watch each film and maybe make out a bit if the mood was right, but it had just become so…boring.

Just like every other day, Tina was walking with Artie to his third period class, gave him a small peck on the cheek, and then continued down the hallway to her favorite class of the day: pre calculus. All the while she had been regarding how sad it really was that she looked forward to math class each day more than spending time with her boyfriend.

Tina sat down at her desk in the third row, just close enough to not miss anything but far enough where she managed to not get called on too much. She got out her textbook, red and black graphing calculator, which Kurt had personalized for her, and last night's homework, which she was particularly confident about, when of all people, Noah Puckerman approached her.

"Yo…uhm…Tina?" Puck felt quite guilty at the fact he barely remembered her name because he was so used to calling her "Stutterfly" or "that Asian goth chick", but beginning a conversation with a derogatory remark wasn't exactly the way to get what you wanted.

Tina looked up from her desk, surprise conspicuous in her eyes considering Puck had apparently not attended a math class in two years and, noticing that he had no math supplies in hand, assumed he needed to borrow a calculator or something of that sort.

"Hi Puck. I'm sorry, Kurt is borrowing my backup calculator, but Mr. Garrison always keeps a few extras he lets students borrow." Tina managed to say surprising herself with the calmness in her voice recognizing the fact that she intentionally never had a real conversation with the school man whore.

Puck furrowed his brow taking in Tina's quick and presumptuous reply. After shrugging it off realizing she must just be intimidated by the school stud actually talking to her, he responded saying "Oh, no, I'm not even in your math class, I'm in Algebra II this semester, but I'm kinda struggling, and I figured since you're Asian and all, you must be good at math and I was wondering if you'd tutor me. I usually do just enough to pass, but this chapter is kicking my ass and I can't fail another class."

Rolling her eyes at Puck's racist yet accurate comment, Tina realized his request was really no surprise and that if he didn't pass math, then he would be ineligible for all extra curricular activities, including glee, so she agreed to help him.

"Oh, yeah, no problem, I tutor some middle school kids at the library after school on Tuesday's and Thursday's from 3-4. If you want to stop by around four we'll see how you're doing and how I may help" Tina was quite proud of her confident, matter-of-fact response, realizing just how much being in glee and making some real friends has affecting her communication skills.

"Alright. Cool. Hopefully a few lessons from the person with the highest grade in precalc will help my "D" in the class. See you after school Tee." Puck answered, turning to leave the classroom and giving Tina his signature smirk and wink.

"Tee"? No one called her Tee except Artie. They were by no means on a nickname basis. Heck, they were barely on a first name basis! That was just weird, but not nearly as bizarre as the little flutter in her stomach when he winked at her. She knew that he had directed that little smirk to every girl at school at one point or another, but she could hardly remember the last time something Artie did had made her stomach feel like that. Tina decided it was best not to analyze any of it at the moment.

About halfway through finishing her assignment, while the rest of the class was on their second problem, it occurred to her, why hadn't Puck just asked Mike for help? Mike was one of his closest friends and as of the last test, had a grade 1% higher than Tina's. Upon realizing this, a little involuntary thought popped into her head: what if Noah Puckerman happened to be the change and excitement her life needed?


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Only in my wildest dreams do I own Glee.

**A Welcome Change**

Chapter 2

Puck sauntered into the library right on time, taking in his surroundings as if he were in a hospital rather than the town's humble little library. He shifted uncomfortably looking around for Tina. This obviously wasn't his choice of hangout on the weekends. Truth be told, he actually enjoyed reading, just not when anyone forced him to, but he definitely didn't want to advertise it.

He spotted Tina walking around a table of four children, about the age of twelve, occasionally bending down next to one to assist them. Instead of approaching her immediately, he observed her mannerisms for a moment. Each time she helped one of the confused looking children, she would get down to their level and smile, looking them straight in the eyes, while tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. He could tell that when one of the students were getting frustrated, Tina remained calm and didn't seem to mind at all re-explaining things a few times until they understood entirely. Puck couldn't help but smile at the fact he had never seen Tina so happy and in her element except for when she was singing in glee.

She stood from helping a young girl with her math, a genuine smile on her face as she praised her for her work, and spotted Puck. His thoughts were interrupted as he noticed Tina looking directly at him, a look of amusement on her face as she realized he had been watching her for the past few minutes, and walked toward her looking a little less confident in this unusual setting.

Tina said goodbye to each of her students, still smiling, and each of them seemed to really take to her, one little girl even hugging her, reminding Noah of how his sister had embraced him when he had agreed to take her and her friends to Haunted Trails.

"How much do you get paid for this gig?"

"Nothing. I volunteer at the library, and they have me tutor. I'd much rather be doing this than shelving books."

"Ah. Cool. So…"

Tina giggled to herself at the fact that Puck looked so unnaturally unconfident in a place as unintimidating as the library.

"Well, I'm here to help, right? Have a seat. Algebra 2 really is a piece of cake after you understand all of the basic properties."

Noah seemed quite unsure of himself throughout the entire tutoring session, which Tina found quite entertaining since she had only seen the tough side of Puck, but he had to admit that Tina really was a good teacher. She never reprimanded him when he couldn't understand something right away, and when he finally accomplished something he was struggling with, Tina would always outwardly recognize his accomplishment, beaming as if it were her own.

No one had ever treated Noah this way, or given him much credit academically. Normally, whenever he did something well in class, the teacher would simply tell him that he should work that hard all the time, a stern look distinct on his or her face. Noah felt like a misbehaving puppy whose only need all along was positive attention.

He liked the way Tina had treated him. He was so used to being yelled at and insulted by girls. Quinn, Santana, Mercedes, and Rachel were always telling him what he was doing wrong, but never hinting at how he should fix it. A small thought then crossed his mind. He had dated every girl in glee at one point or another, why had he never considered Tina a viable target for his affections, considering she was the nicest and least demanding girl in the club. Then he remembered that she was in a committed relationship with Artie. Not that that had ever stopped him before, but they just seemed so happy together and he knew Tina was entirely loyal and content with Artie. He also did not want on that dude's bad side by flirting with Tina, especially since the only result would be being smacked across the face and losing his math tutor.

* * *

Tina found their first tutoring session extremely productive and very educational for both Puck _and _her. She found that he was rather charming when he wasn't trying to impress anyone particularly, which would have been quite difficult in itself as Puck's math skills were much less than impressive. He surprisingly listened and followed direction well and though she had to explain a few topics multiple times, he eventually grasped every point she was trying to get across.

She would sometimes catch herself treating him like one of the twelve year olds she tutored instead of the teenage boy with an infamous reputation, but he didn't seem to mind in the slightest. There was no tension between them and for moments when they would briefly stop working when a word problem reminded them of something from their lives and talk for a minute, it almost seemed as if they were good friends.

Puck was Tina's first student who wasn't in middle school, and she found herself subconsciously trying to impress him with her ability to do mathematical operations in her head, but would then realize how stupid it was of her to think that something like that would ever impress Noah Puckerman. Though she had never bothered to speak to him before, Puck had power and she wanted him to think highly of her, though she never particularly thought highly of him.

From the way he would give his little smirk to every living thing with a skirt, she had never doubted any of the stories she had heard about him until now. At the moment he seemed so innocent and it was obvious to her that he had potential academically if he would just attend a class once in a while. Tina was gradually finding herself becoming moderately attracted to Noah. He was super delicious physically after all, no one could deny that, but his seemingly repulsive personality had caused her to never think twice about him.

She shrugged this brief thought off after realizing that one tutoring session where Puck seemed human meant little to nothing as tomorrow at school, he'd be back to his walking sex shark of an individual.

After their tutoring session had ended, they stood and Noah awkwardly thanked Tina for her help, not quite knowing how to say goodbye after laughing, talking, and learning more than he had in the past two months in the last hour with a girl he had never really had a conversation with before.

"No problem. Would you like to come again on Thursday, or do you think you've got everything down pretty well?" Tina said slightly blushing recognizing the cause for Noah's awkwardness and feeling the same way.

"Well a little extra help never hurt anyone. So, Thursday? But I'll see you in glee tomorrow." Puck said before smiling and exiting the library.

Tina watched Noah retreat and couldn't help but wonder if that genuine smile splayed across Puck's face meant slightly more than a "thanks for helping me graph parabolas."

A/N: Okay, well I hope that wasn't too horrible or too much of a disappointment. I know it was kinda slow, but hopefully more will occur in the next chapter. I want to start moving things along soon, but I'm not entirely sure what direction I want to go. Suggestions are greatly welcomed! If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading and of course reviews are always appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my cliché little plotline.

**A Welcome Change**

**Chapter 3**

Tina figured that the random thoughts of Puck popping in and out of her head throughout the day were entirely expected and harmless. After all, if you had just spent an afternoon talking and laughing with a gorgeous guy who had never given you the time of day before, you're bound to think of it now and then. Even though Tina was a very friendly person, she was never one to initiate friendships. She figured that if someone really wanted to be her friend, _they _would approach _her. _ Despite their productive tutoring session the day before, Puck still would have been the last person she expected to take that initiative.

Her school day was average and so was most of glee, save for a few extra casual looks in Puck's direction. It wasn't until Mr. Shuester announced their glee assignment that her day became the least bit interesting.

After Rachel's complaining that she didn't get enough perks as glee club captain, Mr. Shue allowed her to pick the groups and the assignment for that week.

"After discussing with Mr. Shuester that he does not administer enough responsibilities to me as the glee club captain, he has decided that I shall pick your partners for this week's assignment. Each group of two will be required to perform one duet from any Broadway show that reflects their current relationship. The groups are as followed: Mercedes and Santana, Brittany and Artie, Kurt and Mike, Matt and Quinn, Tina and Puck, and Finn and me."

She smiled fondly at Finn while the rest of the club simultaneously rolled their eyes. Leave it to Rachel to pick a Broadway assignment as well as pair herself with her beau, while pairing everyone else with someone they barely talk to.

Taking in each duet, Tina realized that the only truly volatile group was Mercedes and Santana. They were too much like each other to function well together. Then it hit her: her and Puck? It could work. They got along well together and to be entirely honest, she subconsciously was hoping she'd be paired with him. It'd give her an opportunity to get to know him in a more casual setting. Truth be told, she wanted to figure him out.

After all, that's what first attracted her to Artie. During their first _real _conversation, he gave her an awful lot of vague answers while not holding back to ask any questions of his own. This sparked something inside of her that made her want to get close to him. She and Artie were obviously very fond of eachother, however, she hated to admit that he was getting almost…boring. She thought she knew everything there was to know about him and _now_ Tina was determined to find out if Puck could be the infamous man whore everyone said he was _and _the sweet guy she tutored at the library the other day. The more she thought about it, the more she decided that Rachel was even better than the 'hat of fate'.

* * *

When announced he would be paired with Tina, he was sort of indifferent about the idea. Puck would have preferred her over any other girl in glee at the moment. They were on good terms and she wasn't likely to yell at him. Also, she could hold her own when it came to musical theatre, so he wouldn't have to think too much when it came to a song selection. All in all, the odds were in his favor when it came to this assignment. He was actually sorta…excited.

Tina was talking with Mercedes when Puck approached her.

"Hey, Tina. So, since you were helping me tomorrow with my math, did you want to just work on our glee assignment then?"

"Yeah, that should work. However, I don't think the library is the best place to practice our number for glee." Tina couldn't help but smile at this, thinking back to her "Can't Touch This" experience.

"Point taken. You're house for tutoring, then we can work on the duet?"

"Uhm, sure, why not? 4:30 tomorrow then?"

"Sounds good." Puck said winking.

Tina simply rolled her eyes. The winking thing was definitely getting old, however, the Puck at her house thing, _definitely _new.

**A/N**: Sorry, a little slow again I know. I'm just trying to move the story along and get a very major character points across. I didn't mean to make it seem like Tina was simply tired of Artie, but the point I was trying to make was that if you truly love someone, you never stop learning new things about them. i.e. Tina's doubts about Artie. I promise more action in the next few chapters including Tina/Kurt friendship, deep Puck/Tina conversation, growth in their friendship, epic duets, Tina/Artie conversation/confrontation, and _maybe_ some Puck realization with Tina soon to follow?


End file.
